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Amarillo’s Jay Perdue does his version of the backstroke while making a practice run on Friday at Lake Meredith. Perdue hopes to complete a 10-mile swim sometime this week to raise money for Victory Church.
Man to test Meredith’s waters
Globe-News Sports Writer
Jay Perdue has thought up a ton of reason in the last 20 years or so why he should try to swim the length of Lake Meredith. A
ll he needed to give him the final push was a couple of really good ones.
“I had been talking about it for about 20 years and two things came together,” the soon to be 42-year-old Perdue said. “First of all, I realized I’m not getting any younger. It’s like, hey, I’ve been talking about this for a long time. You either do it, or you don’t.
“And the thing that really sparked me was my church is building. It dawned on me that since people have walkathons and such, that we could get people to sponsor me for so much a mile.”
He is scheduled to swim the lake Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, depending on when the weather will be best. On Friday, all indications pointed to Thursday as the day.
His goal is simple to raise as much money for Victory Church, where he is a member, and a minister of music, as possible. The money will be used for the church’s new building, going up on Arden Road. He said one man in the church has the goal of getting pledges of $4,000 by himself.
“Already the community is so involved,” Perdue said. “When all is said and done, I’m just hoping and believing $100,000 will be raised. That’s my target, to swim for $10,000 a mile.
Pledges can be made by calling Amarillo Globe News In-touch line at 376-1000, then enter code 7200, or by calling the church at 359-9463.
He plans to start near the river at 10 a.m., and finish at the Marina Boat Ramp somewhere in the area of 8 p.m.
As far as Perdue knows, a 10-mile trek across the lake has never been done before. The closest resemblance of it came when a Michigan man swam eight-miles of it.
Perdue owns Perdue Acoustics in Amarillo, and has manufactured acoustical panels for Universal Studios in Florida, the CIA training facility in Washington, D.C. and for the NASA Apollo Saturn Project.
He has been practicing and conditioning for the swim for about a month by going out in the lake and putting in up to six miles.
“I knew miles in the pool weren’t going to get it,” Perdue said. “So I’ve been making myself go. If you go in at Harbor Bay and you’re heading toward the Fritch Fortress, there is no where to get out. You either make it or you don’t.”
Perdue has taught himself many things while slowly swimming across the lake. He learned how to swim with leg cramps. He learned how to paddle along while choking. He also learned how to put on pantyhose.
“The wet suit is comfortable at six hours,” he said. “But then things start to happen that you have never experienced. Not only do the joints start going out and having to tape my ankles and things like that. All of a sudden I have no skin on the back of my leg where the wet suit rubs. What’s easy on your body at four miles will ruin your body at six. I put on pantyhose for the first time in my life to try and keep the skin from peeling.”
According to the stipulations on the permit issued by the park, allowing him to attempt the feat, someone certified in CPR must be with him at all times. Trainer Sabrina Casey fills that need and on the day of the actual attempt, she will stay with him on a jet ski.
“It would be hard not to just do anything I can to finis,” he said. “If I don’t make the 10 miles, they better put me in an ambulance.”